Nightmare Alley (2021) ****

Guillermo del Toro's lushly photographed 2021 update of 1947's Nightmare Alley doesn't change the story much at all. In that regard, there are no surprises here for anyone who has seen the original film (I did for the first time last year via The Criterion Collection's excellent Blu-ray). No, the joy here is in watching a very strong cast work with very strong material (though I'm not sure "joy" is quite the right word, as it's a downer of a tale). 

On the cast note—I was surprised at how well Bradley Cooper carried the film, as he's not an actor I particularly follow or care for. Of course—because it's del Toro—there are the trademark flourishes of brief but gruesome violence and there's the sumptuous cinematography, along with wonderful Art Deco production design, and delicious period costumes to savor. 

I haven't read William Lindsay Gresham's 1946 novel yet but I've been meaning too since I saw Edmund Goulding's 1947 adaptation. I bought the novel at the start of this year and plan to start reading it tomorrow, and then revisit the 1947 film once I finish it. NA is a fairly straightforward story but its themes of loss, desperation, lust, and greed are universal. When those themes are wrapped up in a noir with a carnival backdrop, it makes for intriguing viewing, where the beautiful, "normal" people reveal themselves to be the true freaks.

You can find my Guillermo del Toro Feature Films Ranked list here.